“Anyone serious about skating learns to deal with it. The hard thing to deal with is an injury that will never get better. Totally screwing your knee at 27 threatens to end all you really cared about since you were twelve. It’s ironic that in order to be able to skate again, you have to stop for months and feel the pain of being a poseur.“Jan MacLean, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

“Isn’t it better to know how life feels than to just watch from the sidelines? There isn’t a better feeling than getting hurt trying a

trick, healing, then coming back and conquering that trick.

Satisfaction at its finest. – Paul, Internet City

“Falling down is what makes me want to get up and try the trick again. It’s all about having fun and overcoming the challenge. – Dave, Mesquite, Texas

“If you think about it, there will always be downsides to the good things. Getting hurt is a minor problem when you’re having so much fun doing what you love. “Brian Graves, Smiths, Alabama

“Every trick I’ve bled trying to learn was worth the pain. When you land that trick, the pain you got while trying it floats away. You’re in a whole different place. It’s what you came to skateboarding for, what you have stayed with it for, and what you’ll never quit for. – Rob Carroll, Old Tappan, New Jersey

“If you want to throw yourself down a twenty-stair rail and ride away with the thrill of landing something gnarly, then you have to expect to get chomped at some point. – Ashley Host, Internet County

“The other day I was tailsliding down this box, bailed, and chipped more than half of my front tooth off! I’ve got to get a root canal, but it was worth it. I’m not going to stop skating just because of a chipped tooth. People true to skating know what I mean. – Clay Kessack, Superior, Colorado

“I recently broke the end of my elbow off while skating. The scar is pretty cool, and the admiration from little kids and the nods from the old hesh dogs when seeing the scar is, too, but I’m not “supposed” to skate for six months. That sucks. I have so many tricks pounding around in my head right now. So this adds some motivation for that day I can get back out there and rip things up again. – Kevlar, Internetland

“Getting hurt is all part of the process of enjoying the sport, and that’s what separates the people who actually like to skate from the people who are just in it because of how it’s hyped nowadays. – Ross Jenkins, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

“Falling is just a part of getting better. If you’re falling and getting hurt, it shows dedication. It’s a big part of skating. I mean, without falling and getting hurt, skateboarding would be easy, just like Rollerblading. – “Axel, Internetburg

“You can’t really get hurt unless you try something, and you

can’t progress if you don’t try. Skateboarding is all about fun, and it’s hard to have fun if you don’t progress. If you get hurt, at least you didn’t pussy out on trying the trick. – Nathan Dart, Internetville